President Obama Calls for Jobs & Opportunity in the State of the Union Address

By Associated Press&nbsp|&nbsp

Posted: Tue 10:35 PM, Jan 28, 2014

President Barack Obama is proposing new incentives for trucks to run on natural gas and other alternative fuels. In his State of the Union address, Obama is also calling for a new tax credit to spur infrastructure for advanced vehicles that run on cleaner fuels, like hydrogen, natural gas or biofuels. Most of Obama's other proposals on energy and climate change were already announced in a climate change speech last year. Those include new efficiency standards for trucks and environmental standards for drilling on public lands. Obama is also repeating his 2013 call for Congress to repeal tax provisions that benefit the oil industry. He wants Congress to create a trust that would use oil and gas revenues to fund technology investments to shift cars off of oil.

President Barack Obama is promising to improve American education from preschool to college in his State of the Union address. Obama promised to connect 15,000 schools and 20 million students with high-speed broadband in the next two years. It's part of the goal he announced last summer to connect 99 percent of students in kindergarten through 12th grade with upgraded technology. Obama says the initiative will be supported by charitable partnerships with companies like Apple, Microsoft, Sprint and Verizon. He also says his administration will award grants to redesign winning high schools to prepare students for today's job market. He also wants colleges to improve access for low-income students and lower costs. And he renewed his call from last year's address for Congress to fund universal preschool.

President Barack Obama says Democrats and Republicans in the House want to overhaul immigration laws. He calls on them to pass legislation this year. In his State of the Union address, Obama says it is time to heed the calls to change immigration laws from business and labor leaders, religious leaders and law enforcement officials. The Senate passed broad legislation last year that enhances border security and provides a path to citizenship for about 11 immigrants in the United States illegally. Among the proposals under consideration by House Republican leaders is one that would give legal status to immigrants in the U.S. illegally but not citizenship. The White House has said Obama wants the legislation to lead to citizenship. But Obama did not make that demand Tuesday night.

President Barack Obama says he doesn't expect Republicans to agree with his health care law, but he's urging his political opponents to give up their repeated attempts to do away with it. Obama said in his State of the Union address Tuesday night that more than 40 votes to repeal the Affordable Care Act were plenty. He told members of Congress, quote, "We all owe it to the American people to say what we're for, not just what we're against." He also used the opportunity in his high-profile speech to ask Americans to encourage those they know without insurance to sign up on government exchanges by the end of March. That's the deadline for Americans to get coverage or face a tax penalty.

President Barack Obama says a small U.S. military force may remain in Afghanistan next year, but he's promising to declare an end to the 12-year war there at the end of 2014. Obama said during his State of the Union speech Tuesday that Afghanistan will take responsibility for its own future after the end of the year. He said any U.S. troops that remain beyond 2014 will only help continue to train Afghan forces and carry out counterterror operations against al-Qaida and other extremists. Obama did not say how many troops might remain in Afghanistan after this year. Afghan President Hamid Karzai has so far refused to sign a security agreement with the U.S. that would allow American troops to remain.

President Barack Obama says the U.S. must remain vigilant against al-Qaida as the terror network takes root across the Mideast and North Africa. The president said during his State of the Union speech Tuesday that America can no longer expect to be safe by pursuing overseas terror networks through war -- or even through widespread airstrikes that have been a hallmark of the U.S. fight against extremists. He said extremism in places like Yemen, Somalia, Iraq and Mali will best be defeated with help from foreign allies and through targeted operations and limited use of unmanned drones. Obama also called on Congress to lift restrictions on transferring al-Qaida and Taliban detainees held at the U.S. military base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and finally close the prison.

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